written by Akshaya Rajangam
I had the pleasure of speaking at the Leicester Council of Faiths Annual General Meeting & Interfaith Week celebrations a couple of weeks ago.
The theme of the evening was "Women in Faith", where alongside 3 other distinguished women, I had the pleasure of addressing the crowd represented by 45 various faith & cultural organisations, sharing my perspectives of the liberal & progressive ideas of femininity and womanhood stemmed from Hindu Dharma.
From drawing parallels to women like the philosopher Maitreyi, the courageous Savitri & compassionate Kunti and how I aspire to embody those qualities in the various facets of my life, I also expressed my humble gratitude to those who have broken the glass ceiling across various fields of medicine, sports and the arts, ending my speech with a deep privilege of being able to connect my culture's reverence to motherhood & fertility with my everyday job of delivering babies.
The evening, graced by local councillors, mayors & the police planning commissioner for Leicester, received the speech well with a renewed perspective of Hindu Dharma and its attitude to women.
This speech, close to my heart, was a real opportunity to connect with the Leicester Council of Faiths and its esteemed members - exploring ideas on how to further raise awareness of women's health across Leicester's rich multicultural fabric so that every woman can feel empowered about their reproductive health, regardless of their ethnicity & cultural background. I am looking forward to being able to continue this conversation towards tangible actions with the like-minded individuals present that evening.
I am proud and grateful to be a part of Vaani Speakers for giving me the tools to aspire to congruency in conveying ideas & perspectives that contribute to a sustainable, flourishing society.
Are you working in an EDI or healthcare space endeavouring to reduce inequity to public's access to health education/awareness? Please reach out - would love to soundboard!
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